Undersown crops and their impact on biological weed control

Research has been underway for some time into new methods of crop protection with a view to reducing the use of conventional herbicides. In conventional agriculture, where the use of plant protection products is very high, invasive weeds (e.g. Echinochloa crus-galli) are developing resistance to the very products that are intended to control them. This places a strain not only on monocultures but also on the environment. Alternative solutions are therefore needed. One such example is biological crop protection, which is the subject of this thesis. It explains how undersown crops influence the activity of seed predators. Seed predation was recorded and subsequently analysed in an extensive experiment. The results were surprising...

Research has been underway for some time into new methods of crop protection with a view to reducing the use of conventional herbicides. In conventional agriculture, where the use of plant protection products is very high, invasive weeds (e.g. Echinochloa crus-galli) are developing resistance to the very products that are intended to control them. This places a strain not only on monocultures but also on the environment. Alternative solutions are therefore needed. One such example is biological crop protection, which is the subject of this thesis. It explains how undersown crops influence the activity of seed predators. Seed predation was recorded and subsequently analysed in an extensive experiment. The results were surprising...